


It's Lonely To Be King

by jujukittychick



Series: LJ tamingthemuse prompts [10]
Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: Community: tamingthemuse, Gen, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-22
Updated: 2014-05-22
Packaged: 2018-01-26 01:43:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1670093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jujukittychick/pseuds/jujukittychick
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jareth’s alone and musing about his role as king.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It's Lonely To Be King

**Author's Note:**

> My first time playing with this fandom. I see this as either a prequel to the actual movie or possibly the prologue of a crossover story though I’m debating on whether it would be Harry Potter or Xander (from Buffy) that would be doing the crossing… I’m open to ideas/suggestions
> 
> Prompt: tamingthemuse #272-Bound  
> Disclaimer: I do not own anything except the computer I'm typing this on and am making no money. The fandoms belong to their respective creators and owners who *are* making money off them. I'm just doing this for my own fun and entertainment; in general, if you recognize something, I don't own it.

Jareth stood at his bedroom window, high in one of the castle towers, staring out at the Goblin City below and the sprawling Labyrinth beyond. He’d lost track of how long he’d been there, ruling over the multitude of creatures that called the Goblin Realm home,  _yearsdecadescenturies_. He was stuck in this place, bound by honor and oaths and family, and as magical and exciting as it could be, it was equally as lonely.  
  
Oh, sure, the goblins were good for entertainment, but they weren’t exactly wonderful conversationalists. And as for the beings that were actually smart enough for him to talk to, they had nothing in common with him and an annoying tendency to grovel all the time. Not that he disliked the groveling, it was quite fun to watch, but it was hard to have a serious conversation with someone who was literally kissing your boots, not to mention it left smudges on the high gloss shine.  
  
He was only able to leave the land for brief periods of time and usually those ventures were used to “persuade” some hapless relative who couldn’t hold onto their tempers to play a little game. It was so much fun watching the humans run his Labyrinth, watching them stumble through the pitfalls and traps that hovered just around every bend…assuming you could find the bend to start with. Thinking of his throne room full of the merrily chaotic goblins he ruled over, he had to admit it was also amusing to watch them fail time and time again. He had been called many names over years, cruel and heartless the most recurring, but it was not him who wished his child or sibling or friend away to the goblins in a fit of anger. He considered it to be a life lesson for those people that were sent back home alone, but not before watching as their loved one morphed into one of the hideously cute creatures that called him “King” - be careful what you wish for, and all that.  
  
Of course, there were the handful that actually succeeded in running his Labyrinth, passing all his tests and were able to return home with their little bundle of joy, crying joyous tears at their unlikely reunion. Of course then he couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the couple, sure the savior had learned a lesson he would assume, if nothing else simply just how to be doggedly persistent under unlikely circumstances, but the captured, at least the ones older than toddlers, more often than not simply forgave them all because they saved them. How stupid could they be; it was their savior’s fault they were put in that position to begin with, they should be going back home and heaping even more punishment upon them. Some things he just would never understand about humans.  
  
But even so, during those scant hours he had the unlikely saviors at his mercy, it was a thrill. They were always so lively and vibrant, so passionate whether it be in their anger or misery. They were always so willing to yell and curse, to try to bribe or finagle an easier path, or in the end to rant and cry. They hurt and bled and cried tears of pain or suffering or joy or anger. They were so alive in every way. He had to assume it was due to their incredibly short life spans, needing to cram as much experience into every single second as they possibly could.  
  
They were the closest thing to an equal he could find. Oh, they all fell short in some way or another in the end, they were all so incredibly determined to leave him and return to their mundane little lives. But for those few short hours, he felt happier than he did at any other time. But now, as their world evolved, became more modern, they were not so quick to believe in the mythical, making his work that much harder…making the span of time between visits that much longer.  
  
Watching the sun set, its hues of pink and orange staining the walls of the Labyrinth and the sprawling, ramshackle city below before the indigo night swept behind to envelop it all, Jareth came to a decision. It had been much too long since his last playmates had left him behind,  _monthsyearsdecades_. It was time to see just where he could poke and prod things along. With his decision made, he summoned his cape, twirling it around him dramatically before shifting and flying out his open window.  
  
And somewhere in the human realm, a white barn owl landed on a branch outside a window and watched the lives of the humans inside the house play out, biding his time as he studied his prey.


End file.
